Bandera incumbents stung in primary

Updated 12:41 am, Thursday, May 31, 2012

Bandera County incumbents took a drubbing in Tuesday's Republican primary, with two county commissioners ousted and County Attorney John Payne facing a run-off. No Democrats are seeking those posts in November.

The results reflected public apathy and a general discontent with government, according to Precinct 1 Commissioner Bruce Eliker, who narrowly lost to political newcomer Bob Grimes.

“It was kind of a ‘vote the bums out' type of deal,” said Eliker, a two-term incumbent.

Grimes' campaign platform stressed the importance of long-term planning by the county and of wisely apportioning its resources.

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“I'm honored and humbled that the voters have placed this responsibility in me,” said Grimes, 61, a retired health care executive.

Three-term Precinct 3 Commissioner Richard Keese was beaten by Andy Wilkerson, a construction superintendent who ran on a populist pledge to return government to local hands.

“The government controls too much. There's too much regulations and stuff. You can't do this, you can't do that,” said Wilkerson, 59, Wednesday. “Let's get the people making those decisions, not the government.”

He said he also wants to improve county roads, even while reducing government spending.

The bitter three-way race for county attorney saw Bandera lawyer Janna Lindig capture 46.8 percent of the votes, to 36.7 for Payne and 16.4 for Daniel J. MacNeil.

In the campaign, Payne, a one-term incumbent, touted new efficiencies in his office, staff training and his community involvement.

He was criticized for maintaining his private law practice in Bandera while county attorney which, while legal, repeatedly raised conflict of interest concerns.

In the campaign, Lindig and McNeil both pledged to close their law practices if elected.

Lindig says Payne is too willing to plead out criminal cases, noting he has rarely tried a case since taking office in 2009.

“I'm just going to keep campaigning very hard,” she said Wednesday.

Payne couldn't be reached for comment.

McNeil said he is disinclined to endorse Payne or Lindig in the July 31 runoff, which he predicted “is going to be a hard-fought race.”